A year and a half has passed since Alcamoth was reclaimed and the city has almost completely recovered from the war. The population is continuing to rise, most of the major repairs were done, and Melia's advice to adapt was taken into consideration as the city itself has been expanding and adding new structures as it grew in size.
Shulk's help with reconstruction and technological advancements he assisted with at M.S.I.T also aided in the growth of his new home. He had been gaining quite a reputation with the citizens, and even rumors began circulating after Shulk announced that he would be spending less time on reconstruction to be around Melia more and learn about the inner-workings of the city.
Alcamoth was not the only place in this new world that was advancing either. In the time that had passed, the High Entia and Machina have agreed to share their knowledge with the other cities and larger settlements, resulting in vast quality of life improvements, and Shulk and Melia's friends have been taking steps forward in their own lives.
Their friends were all currently living in Colony 9, still keeping in touch with each other. Dunban and Fiora already had a place to live in the colony, while Reyn and Sharla packed all their things and moved out of Colony 6, now staying at Reyn's old house back in Colony 9. Both Reyn and Dunban took Colonel Vangarre's job offer, and although they were given different positions, they still worked closely with each other. Sharla was also working part time while studying at a local university, hoping to apply to medical school once she met the requirements and also when her and Reyn's living arrangements were more stable, knowing for sure if they were going to be either staying in Colony 9 or moving back to Colony 6.
Everything seemed to be going well, a normal day like any other, but they all remembered a certain event was coming up in two days from now, Melia's birthday.
"I think we should go and surprise 'em!" Reyn suggested. He and the others had some free time and were all hanging out at Dunban's house.
"I think that's a great idea! But can we all get time off to go?" Sharla asked.
"With how much me and Dunban have been busting our backs for Vangarre, I think we can get him to give us some time off." Reyn answered.
"You're not much of a sweet-talker, Reyn. I think you should let me handle talking to him." Dunban spoke up.
"What about you, Fiora? You up for a road trip?" Sharla asked.
"I don't think I'll have much trouble with getting time off. I'd love to see them again too." She replied.
While Fiora was originally undecided, she kept herself busy by volunteering at an orphanage a short distance away from Colony 9. Ever since her rescue mission with Dunban in the fight for Alcamoth, she's wanted to help those that were less fortunate in any way that she could, and especially had a soft spot for children and families that were affected by war. After volunteering there for a few months, they noticed how well Fiora got along with the kids and was offered a paying job.
"I would too, and I'm looking forward to seeing what they've done with Alcamoth after all this time." Sharla said.
"Alright, let's do it! We can decide where to meet up tomorrow and head out!" Reyn said.
They spent the rest of the day shopping and met up the next morning at the Military District with wrapped gifts and things they thought they would need for their trip.
"We should start making tracks." Reyn said and threw his bag over his shoulder.
"Yeah, we don't want to get there too late." Sharla added.
"No need to worry about that." Dunban said with a smirk, "Why do you think I told you all to meet me at the base? Not only did I get Reyn and I a few days off, I also hitched us a ride with a caravan that was heading to Alcamoth to deliver more materials. It'll only take us a few hours to get there."
"Way to work your magic there, Dunban. I guess letting you do the talking was the right call." Sharla praised.
"I just followed up on what Reyn said earlier about busting our backs, not really anything special." Dunban crossed his arms, still wearing that smirk.
After a few hours, the Imperial Capital came into sight. They hopped off the caravan and entered the city on foot, taking in the sights while they searched for Shulk.
"Those two really managed to turn this place around." Sharla smiled.
"Yeah, no kidding. Do they even need any more of this stuff everyone's sending them?" Reyn added.
"It must be for the other districts, or maybe adding some stuff to the city while they're rebuilding. I don't know if it's just me, but this place actually looks a bit bigger than I remember it." Dunban commented.
A Hom's in a guard uniform walked past the group and Reyn put a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.
"Yo, boss man, know where we can find Shulk?" Reyn asked.
"Shulk?" The guard replied.
"Y'know, the guy with the Monado?" Reyn asked again.
"The Monado? Oh, you must mean the consort." The guard answered.
"The who? Look pal, I think we're talking about two different people here." Reyn said.
"Then you must be the one who's confused here, 'pal'. The wielder of the Monado is the consort." The guard shot back, starting to sound impatient.
"Wait, what?" Reyn took a step back in shock and Sharla stepped in to do the talking.
"Okay then, let's rephrase that question. Do you know where we can find the consort?" Sharla asked.
"Do you have business with him?" The guard cautiously asked.
"We do. We know him more personally, that must have been why there was some confusion." Dunban spoke up.
"I see. Sorry, I recently moved here and just started this job not too long ago, still trying to remember who everyone is. He should be at our technological institute right now. To get there, go up to the second floor and use the transporter on the southwest side of the outer ring. There should be signs to guide you the rest of the way from there, I could also escort you if you'd like." The guard offered.
"That's all right, we'll find our own way there." Sharla replied.
After thanking the guard, the four of them made their way to the upper floor of Alcamoth.
"I'm actually glad that guy didn't tag along." Reyn muttered.
"You weren't exactly making it easy for him, Reyn." Sharla said, "Besides, we were supposed to surprise them, remember? A guard escorting us there might have given it away."
Following the guard's directions, they soon found themselves at a building with a sign out front that read, "Ministry of Science and Innovational Technology."
"Quite a mouthful with a name like that." Reyn commented.
"I'm guessing this is it." Dunban said.
They walked inside and looked around the main lobby. A blonde haired High Entia girl was sitting at the information desk and came over to them, seeing the confused looks on their faces.
"Welcome to M.S.I.T. I'm Denise, is there something I can help you with?" She asked.
"Um, yes. We're here to see Shulk- I mean the consort. A guard told us that he'd be here?" Sharla asked.
"I'll take you to him, follow me." Denise said.
She took them to the second floor and Reyn and Dunban peeked into the windows of rooms as they walked down the hallway, watching the people inside conducting experiments.
"A place like this must be heaven for Shulk. That kid can work on anything he could imagine in here." Dunban chuckled.
"You must know the consort pretty well if you all keep referring to him by his first name." Denise commented.
"We do. We've known him for quite a while, actually. Reyn and my little sister grew up with him." Dunban replied.
Dunban walked alongside Denise and the two got lost in their own chatting while she guided them around the facility. The others didn't seem to mind it, even grinning at how well she and Dunban were getting along so quickly.
The group suddenly came to a halt after Denise stopped at one of the doors.
"I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait out here. What they're working on inside is classified and I need their permission before I let you in." Denise said.
"That's fine, go ahead." Dunban replied.
Everyone waited outside while Denise stepped in.
"What gives? We have to sit outside and wait just to see our old pal?" Reyn asked.
"She's just doing her job, Reyn." Dunban said and stroked his beard, "She mentioned something in there being classified, so that's probably what it's about. I wonder what it could be, though?"
"It could be anything, knowing Shulk." Sharla commented.
"By the way, Dunban, I seen the way you were looking at that girl while she was taking us here~" Fiora teased.
"Who, Denise? I don't know what you're talking about." Dunban said, sounding pretty quick to defend it.
"Oh yeah? Then why are your cheeks red?~" Fiora kept teasing him and pinched at his cheek.
"Wait, they are?" Sharla leaned closer to see Dunban blushing, "Aww, that's so cute!"
"Don't be getting in your brother's business, Fiora." Dunban said and batted her hand away.
Denise came back out shortly after, "You can come in."
The room inside was massive, much bigger than they were expecting it to be. It had office spaces broken into other small rooms and countless lab testing machines, but what really stood out was the rows of cylindrical tubes with strange fluids and Telethia carcasses inside.
"What the hell are they planning on doing with these…" Reyn muttered.
"I don't think I want to know, but classified definitely fits whatever's going on here…" Sharla quietly replied.
The group felt a chill go up their spines and shuddered as they walked past the carcasses, but Denise didn't seem phased and guided them into one of the offices in the back.
"Here they are, sir." Denise said.
"Thanks, Denise." Even though they couldn't see him because the back of his chair was turned to them, they could tell that voice was Shulk's.
Denise went to leave the room but stopped at the door as she and Dunban glanced at each other, both of them blushing.
"Maybe I'll see you around some time?" Dunban asked.
"Maybe you will." Denise said back, giving Dunban a small smile before she left.
Dunban looked back over and noticed Fiora smirking at him, her hands also clasped behind her back and playfully swaying side to side.
"What?" Dunban asked defensively.
"Oh, nothing~" Fiora replied.
Shulk was too busy with what he was doing to notice their bickering. He finished what he was writing down and turned his chair, jumping back at the sight of his friends standing there.
"Guys?! What are you doing here?" Shulk asked.
"Well, nice to see you too after all this time, Shulk. You don't come visit your old buddies anymore, not even a letter to tell us how you're doing…" Reyn joked.
"We also remembered that Melia's birthday was coming up. We wanted to come by and surprise you guys, maybe check out what's been going on around Alcamoth too while we were at it." Sharla added.
"Well you certainly got the surprise part down." Shulk chuckled.
"We got a bit of a surprise about you too. Heard you're some kinda big shot around here now." Sharla smirked.
"How so?" Shulk asked.
"Don't play dumb with us, Shulk." Fiora jokingly pressed, "We had to wait outside and get clearance just to even come in here, that should be saying something. But we weren't talking about just your work. Almost nobody here refers to you by your first name anymore, they either call you sir or… consort?"
"Oh, you mean that? Melia and I met with a few other people and we went over all the damage done to the city. While we were talking, the captain mentioned that he found unfinished research that could reverse the Telethia mutation. That's what we're doing here, and probably why you had to get permission since it's still classified." Shulk explained.
"Wait, seriously?! When did this happen?" Sharla asked.
"Right after you guys left. The work we've been putting into it has been going on for a while, but this building is still relatively new. This place was damaged quite a bit during the Telethia invasion, and that unfinished research I mentioned was originally done in a lab inside the High Entia Tomb. Since the Tomb is off-limits to most people, we packed up everything we could from there and moved it to a private university that M.S.I.T owned. It wasn't really damaged over there, they had all the equipment we could've needed, and it was owned by the same people, so we could still keep everything classified and work over there while we waited for this building to be repaired. After it was done, we moved everything again and have been working here ever since." Shulk answered.
"And the consort part?" Fiora asked again, noticing he tried to avoid it.
Shulk let out a reluctant sigh under his breath. He knew about Fiora's feelings back then, but he wasn't sure if she still felt that way after all this time and was hoping to avoid it entirely, not wanting to hurt her.
"That's also true." Shulk said softly, "It came up as a bit of a surprise, even to me, but Melia asked for me to be her consort during that same meeting and I said yes. I've been her consort for as long as you guys have been gone."
"I… I see…" Fiora said.
Even someone as oblivious as Shulk could feel how tense the room was getting with his reveal.
"Speaking of which, Melia doesn't know you guys are here yet, does she?" Shulk asked, trying to change the subject.
"Nope. We came looking straight for you after we got here." Sharla answered.
"Alright. We've got some time before Melia gets back home, I can take the rest of the day off and we'll get something ready for her." Shulk said.
They all followed Shulk out and he gave them a small tour around the newly-restored city while they shopped around. After grabbing some supplies, they headed for the Villa to get everything prepared and hung out for a bit while they waited for Melia to get back.
Shortly after, the front door opened and everyone jumped at the sound of Melia's voice.
"Shulk, are you home?" Melia called out.
"Yeah, I'm in here!" Shulk yelled back.
Everyone hid away while Shulk hurried over to greet her at the door.
"Hey, Angel! Happy birthday!" Shulk said, giving Melia a tight hug and kissed her cheek.
"You're certainly excited about it." Melia commented with a small laugh.
"Thank you, Shulk, but you know my birthday isn't until tomorrow." Melia pointed out after they broke apart.
"I know, but I have something for you, and it can't exactly wait until then." Shulk said eagerly.
"Why not? What is it?" She asked.
"You'll see. No peeking!" Shulk walked behind Melia and covered her eyes, guiding her into the living room.
"Ready?~" Shulk asked.
"Mhm!" Melia nodded back. She was smiling and could feel her heart beating faster with excitement.
"Alright. Come on out, you guys!" Shulk called out.
Shulk moved his hands away and everyone let off a set of pull-string fireworks, streams of confetti launching into the air as they jumped out of their hiding spots.
"Surprise!" They all shouted.
Melia jumped and took a step back. She could see a bunch of balloons hanging from the ceiling, party decorations spread throughout the living room, and also a set of tables behind her friends. One of the tables had trays of food that Fiora prepared, while the other had their presents stacked next to a cake with "Happy birthday Melia" written on it.
"You… you all remembered?" Melia asked, still in shock.
"Of course we did! What, you thought we would just forget about you?" Sharla said and walked over, giving Melia a big hug.
"Well, all of us are here except the fuzz ball." Reyn pointed out.
"It seems he's still out traveling, but he left you a present and a card. A Nopon courier gave me them and Riki must have figured we would give you his gift next time we seen you." Dunban added.
"How sweet of him. I'm sure he'll come visit when he returns, but I'm still happy to see you all." Melia smiled.
They all sat down to eat and were talking nonstop, joking around as if they never left and were catching up on what they've been doing.
"So, birthday girl, had anything planned you wanted to do today?" Sharla asked.
"Actually, I did. I wanted to spend the day in Valak Mountain." Melia replied.
"Not that I have a problem with going there, but I don't think we packed anything for the cold." Reyn said, even shivering as he pictured the mountains in his head.
"We can get you all some clothing better suited for the cold before we go. We already live in places where it's warm all year round, so why not try something different? There's plenty for us to do in the colder climates, like snowboarding or ice skating." Melia said.
"It's your birthday, yet you're the one spoiling us." Sharla joked.
"Would you rather freeze yourselves solid?" Melia playfully shot back.
"I dunno, I think I'd make a pretty good looking ice sculpture." Reyn said and posed.
"If you say so, Reyn." Sharla chuckled, "If birthday girl wants to go, then that's what we'll do. Want to head out after you open your gifts, Melia?"
Melia nodded and they all gathered around to watch her open the gifts after they ate. Dunban remembered that she was eyeing a few books and novels when they were walking around the districts before they left, so he bought them for her. Fiora got her some more casual, Homs-styled dresses along with jewelry and other cosmetics to match the outfits.
Melia opened Riki's card first, seeing a picture he drew with the two of them together in Makna Forest. She then opened the box and inside was a Nopon-made floral headdress, similar to the one Riki drew in his card. She smiled and tried on the headdress.
"It looks cute on you, Melia!" Shulk commented.
The others gave agreeing smiles and Melia kept the headdress on while she opened the rest, but she looked a bit confused when she got to Reyn's gift.
"What's all this, Reyn?" Melia asked, tilting her head a bit.
"It's a bit of a mixed basket. There's survival gear in there and some equipment the defense force gives to soldiers for either long deployments or if they're going to be in harsh environments. We used to camp outdoors quite a bit, so I mixed the two together and made you guys a camping kit for if you ever need it." Reyn answered.
"Some of this stuff looks pretty cool, actually! There's even some stuff in here to build a shelter!" Shulk said and stuck his head in the box.
"I swear, sometimes you're like a kid with a new toy, Shulk." Melia joked. She had been acting a bit more laid-back and playful from being around Shulk for so long, even the others picked up on it because now she would smile and laugh along whenever she joked around.
"Maybe we can put these to use in Valak Mountain. Thank you, Reyn." Melia smiled.
"Mine next!" Sharla said excitedly and handed Melia her gift.
Melia tore off the wrapping and opened the box. Inside was a plethora of stuffed animals, but the one on top was what made her let out a gasp.
"My Dobercorgi!" Melia cried and took it out of the box, giving it a big hug.
"You never took it back with you and I found it while we were moving everything to Reyn's house. I figured I'd get you a few others while I was at it too!" Sharla smiled.
"Thank you, everyone!" Melia said, smiling brightly while still cuddling her Dobercorgi.
"We're glad you like them." Fiora smiled.
"Yeah, it was harder than you'd think to get good gifts for someone that practically has everything." Reyn said.
"The gift itself doesn't matter. If it was from any of you, then I would love it regardless." Melia assured them.
Shulk then came up and hugged Melia from behind, "Ready for mine, Angel?"
Melia eagerly nodded and Shulk left the room, coming back with a long rectangular box. Inside was a white staff with gold etchings and a pentagonal head. The detail and decorations on the head of the staff gave it a heavenly look.
"It's beautiful, Shulk!" Melia said and took it out of the box.
Shulk smiled, "I made it myself. I read some books on how to channel ether and designed this staff so that other people could easily use it too, High Entia or not."
"Is this more of a gift for you or for her then, Shulk?" Dunban joked.
"N-no, it's not like that! Of course it's for her!" Shulk tried to defend through his stammering, he even had to pause for a minute and compose himself.
"It's just that Melia has always been better at using ether compared to the rest of us. I designed it in a way I thought she would like, and also made it easy for others to use because I've been wanting to learn how to use ether better. I just thought… maybe it could be something we can do together." Shulk explained and started blushing.
Melia smiled and held the staff in front of her. Even compared to her Imperial Staff, this new one felt very light, and it was noticeably easier to channel ether with as a small fire elemental appeared over Melia's head with minimal effort.
Wanting to test it out a bit more, Melia had the elemental move across the room, her arm extended to guide it as it flew around. Their friends all looked nervous and took a step back as the elemental traveled over their heads, but Shulk trusted Melia completely as she came closer and stopped the elemental above their heads.
"I love it, Shulk. I could teach you how to better use ether if you want." Melia said.
The two shared a tender kiss, breaking it only after the elemental above them had faded away.
"Not too shabby there, Melia! Now all you need is a name for it!" Reyn spoke up.
"A name? For my staff?" Melia asked.
"What, you haven't given a name to any of your weapons or anything like that before?" Reyn replied, sounding a bit surprised.
"I didn't know people actually did that." Melia commented.
"Tons of people do! Like that weapon you and Shulk made for me, I called it Psychic Sally." Reyn said.
"I still think that's a weird name." Sharla commented.
"Hey, I like it and it's my weapon, I can name it whatever I want. What did you name yours again?" Reyn shot back.
"… Black Rose." Sharla answered, looking away embarrassed.
"I gave names to my daggers too, Elma and Mindy." Fiora spoke up.
"Shulk, Dunban, what about you two?" Melia asked curiously.
"Well…" Shulk started nervously.
Melia reached for Shulk's hand and gave him a small, reassuring smile.
"You don't have to be embarrassed, Shulk. Everyone else is sharing theirs too, and I'm interested to hear yours." Melia said.
Shulk started to relax and locked his fingers between hers, "I never really intended on giving it a name at first, it's always just been the Monado to me. But after everything we went through and how much it revolved around the Monado, I named this new one that Alvis gave me, 'Hope'."
Melia's smile slightly grew and she reached her other hand up, caressing his cheek.
"See? That wasn't so hard. I like it, the name sounds rather fitting." Melia said.
The two shared a small kiss, then looked over at Dunban.
"Alright, Dunban, your turn to share." Shulk said.
"I don't give mine any names." Dunban dismissively replied.
"Oh yes you do, Dunban!" Fiora shot back, "He uses actual names like I do. I'll sometimes use boy names, but Dunban only uses girl names. Reyn told me that sword he's always carrying around was made by Dickson way back when the Bionis was still around, and you know what he named it? Lucy."
"Aww, how cute!" Melia teased, covering her mouth as she started to snicker.
Dunban stayed quiet while the rest of them laughed.
"Any ideas for what you wanted to name your new staff, Melia?" Shulk asked.
"Hm… I'm not quite sure yet. I can't think of anything." Melia replied.
"That's okay. You got it pretty recently, after all." Shulk assured her.
They finished cleaning up the living room and Shulk and Melia took them all to the commercial district. After they shopped and got their winter gear ready, Shulk guided everyone to one of the newer areas around Alcamoth, this one being a giant dome with a hangar in the less populated parts of the city.
"Looks like you were right about this place being bigger, Dunban." Reyn commented.
"Seems so. I don't remember this ever being here." Dunban replied.
"We've been adding a few things as Alcamoth started to grow, this being just one of them." Shulk pointed out.
"Looks impressive, but what are we doing here, Shulk?" Sharla asked.
Shulk turned his head in her direction and grinned, "How did you think we were getting to Valak Mountain?"
They all entered the hangar and Shulk went ahead, approaching a guard while everyone else looked around.
"Your ship is ready, sir." The guard said and held out his hand, showing an activation key in his palm.
Shulk took the key and told everyone to follow behind him, leading them to a docked ship.
"We're flying there? Then where's the pilot?" Sharla asked, looking around confused while the others sat down.
Shulk and Melia walked over to the cockpit, Shulk sat in the pilot's chair while Melia sat next to him in the co-pilot's seat.
"You're looking at him." Shulk grinned and put in the activation key.
"Wait, you know how to fly this thing?" Reyn gawked.
"Not just me, Melia knows how to pilot one too." Shulk answered as he started up the ship.
As the ship gained power, the glass dome above them started to open.
"Clear skies, Consort. Don't bring her back all banged up." A voice was heard over the radio.
"Wait, is that Cap?" Reyn jumped out of his seat and went inside the cockpit, grabbing a spare headset so he could talk on the radio.
"Cap, what's happenin'?" Reyn asked.
"Do people even pay attention to those instructions before takeoff? Get your ass back in your seat, Reyn." The captain joked.
Although the others couldn't talk back without a headset, they could still hear the chatter over the radio and began to snicker.
"Yeah? And what are you gonna do if I don't, shoot us down?" Reyn jokingly shot back.
"Your newly-royal friend isn't the only one with a ship docked here, you know. I'd be more than happy to shoot your cocky ass out of the sky if it weren't for the fact that Shulk and Melia were in there." The captain answered, "If you're looking for a dogfight, let me know after you get back. You all staying here for a bit?"
"You're all more than welcome to stay if you wanted." Melia spoke up.
"Yeah, but Reyn doesn't have a license to fly." Shulk added.
"Figures, he's probably too stupid to even pass the entry portion." The captain said.
"I heard that, you know!" Reyn shouted through the headset.
"You were supposed to." The captain chuckled, "Seriously though, come find me if you're still looking to celebrate once you get back. It's good to hear from you all again, and happy birthday, empress."
"Thank you, captain." Melia smiled.
"Don't mention it. Now go on, get outta here and enjoy it while you're still young." The captain said before taking off his headset.
The radio channel switched back to flight control and Shulk taxied the ship out of the hangar, keeping his hand on the thrust lever. Melia placed her hand over Shulk's and the two smiled at each other before pushing the lever forward, gaining speed and taking off for Valak Mountain.
Shulk found a perfect spot to land once the snow-filled mountains came into sight. It had a cave near the slopes to the lower levels so they could snowboard close to their shelter, and also had a section of ice a short distance away for anyone that wanted to ice skate.
Shulk landed the ship and everyone changed into their winter gear before stepping off to unload everything in the cave.
"Alright. Everything is close by, so go ahead and do whatever you guys want." Shulk said.
Dunban and Fiora grabbed their skates and went towards the frozen pond, while Reyn and Sharla decided to go down the slopes. Sharla grabbed a snowboard while Reyn took a pair of skis before they left the cave.
"What did you want to do first, Melia?" Shulk asked, taking her hand.
"I wanted to go snowboarding." Melia answered, looking pretty eager to go.
They both grabbed snowboards and left the cave. Reyn and Sharla were already sliding down as they walked to the edge of the hill, but Shulk was having trouble moving on his board and kept falling into the snow.
"How are you supposed to move with your foot in this thing?" Shulk frustratedly asked.
Melia wasn't having any issues moving around and went over to Shulk, holding out her hand.
"It's not much different from roller skating, Shulk. Here, watch me." Melia instructed.
She helped Shulk up and showed him what to do before they stood over the edge of the hill. Melia was sliding down with ease, but Shulk couldn't keep his balance and fell over, sliding a few feet down the hill before stopping.
"You okay, Shulk?" Melia was trying not to laugh as she came over to help him up again.
Shulk took her hand and pulled himself up, "This doesn't make any sense. How are you naturally good at this but not when we went roller skating?"
"I can't really explain it either. I just feel like I have more control on a snowboard than I do on roller skates, maybe I pieced together some similarities that made it easier for me." Melia answered, "If you want, maybe I could help you."
"Please do." Shulk said with a small laugh.
The two went back up the slope and Melia held on to Shulk's hands as they skated down, helping him stay balanced. Although Shulk looked nervous about it, Melia started to smile and even blush a little.
"It's kind of like when you taught me how to roller skate back then, isn't it?" Melia asked.
"Yeah, I guess it is. Just the roles are reversed now." Shulk joked.
Shulk started to relax and asked Melia to let go of his hands, wanting to see if he could do it on his own. Melia nodded and let go, following behind her boyfriend the rest of the way downhill, not falling once or needing any help.
"Good job, Shulk! Now you're getting it!" Melia cheered.
"Thanks to you, that is. Hey, how about a race?" Shulk grinned.
"Pretty confident for someone who just learned how to snowboard on his own. Okay, I'll take you on." Melia teased and returned the grin.
Back at the top, Reyn and Sharla overheard the two were about to race and jokingly started to place bets. Shulk and Melia got into position and Sharla stood in front of them to signal the start of the race.
"Alright, go!" Sharla yelled and waved her arms down.
Shulk and Melia shot each other a competitive grin and took off. Melia got a better start, but Shulk started gaining up at the halfway mark and passed her.
"See you at the bottom, Melia~" He teased as he took the lead.
Melia started to grit her teeth as the distance between her and Shulk kept growing.
"You might want to save the gloating for after the race, Shulk." She muttered.
Melia opened her hand and aimed it behind her, summoning a wind elemental in her palm. She shot it backwards and the force sent her flying ahead of Shulk.
"Looks like I'll be seeing you at the bottom, Shulk~" Melia teased back as she regained the lead.
Melia reached the end first and waited for Shulk, already starting to gloat once he hit the bottom of the hill.
"Don't act like I didn't see what you did, Melia!" Shulk protested.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Shulk~" She teased.
"Yes, you do! I know you used a wind elemental to get more speed!" Shulk shot back.
"You never said it was against the rules~ Don't be such a sore loser~" Melia kept teasing him.
Shulk let out a sigh, knowing he wasn't going to win this. He started to smile and threw his arms around Melia.
"Okay, fine. You win, Angel." He said.
Melia cheerfully giggled and hugged him back. She started to blush and looked into his eyes while he caressed her cheek.
"Here's your prize." Shulk closed his eyes and leaned in, pressing his lips to hers as they shared a tender kiss.
They held hands and headed back to the top to see what everyone else was doing. Reyn and Sharla had their skis and snowboards put away, and Dunban and Fiora came back from ice skating. They were all grinning as Shulk and Melia came over.
"Hey Shulk, catch!" Fiora shouted.
Shulk didn't have enough time to react and took a snowball right to the face as he turned his head in Fiora's direction. Everyone busted out laughing while Shulk wiped the snow off his face, even seeing Melia laughing with her mouth covered to try and hide it.
"Oh, you think that's funny, huh?" Shulk quickly made a snowball and threw it at Melia, hitting her in the side of the face.
"Snowball fight!" Reyn yelled as he and Sharla suddenly pulled out an armful of snowballs.
Shulk took Melia's hand and everyone scattered to avoid the barrage of snowballs, getting split into teams of two and peeking from behind forts they made. It was Reyn with Sharla, Dunban with Fiora, and Shulk with Melia.
"Melia, I got an idea!" Shulk said.
Shulk whispered the plan in Melia's ear and she nodded. Shulk then grabbed one armful of snowballs and took off running for Reyn and Sharla's fort.
"Just charging right in, Shulk? I thought you were supposed to be the smart one!" Reyn taunted and readied a snowball.
"I've always got a plan! Hit it, Melia!" Shulk called out.
Melia jumped out from behind Shulk and aimed a fire elemental at the fort, melting it almost instantly and leaving Reyn and Sharla wide open to get pelted with snowballs.
"Oh, come on! How's that fair?" Reyn whined.
Shulk and Melia laughed and put an arm around each other.
"All's fair in love and war, Reyn." Shulk said.
"Oh, is that right?" Reyn smirked.
Reyn ran up and tackled Shulk, sending them both down the hill and they rough-housed as they slid down.
"All's fair in love and war, Shulk!" Reyn yelled loud enough for the others above them to hear.
Melia and Sharla stood by the edge and watched the two go.
"Those two boys of ours, what are we going to do with them?" Sharla laughed.
"Boys will be boys, I guess." Melia chuckled.
Sharla put an arm over Melia's shoulder, but she had a suspicious grin on her face and kept her other arm behind her back.
"Hey, Melia, think fast!" Sharla said and pulled out a snowball she was hiding behind her back, hitting Melia with it.
Melia wiped the snow off her face and playfully glared at Sharla.
"So that's how it is, huh? Okay, our armistice is off!" Melia yelled.
After a small play-fight between the two, Melia overpowered Sharla and sent them both sliding down the hill, following after their boyfriends.
Now Dunban came over to the edge, thinking he had to see what just happened with his own eyes.
"The better question is what am I going to do with the lot of you?" Dunban groaned, although he did have a smile on his face.
"Oh, Dunbaaan~!"
As soon as Dunban turned around, Fiora jumped at him with a handful of snow. She pounced and took him down, pelting him with snow as they took off down the hill with the others.
With the last two reaching the bottom of the hill, they all paused and looked at each other, then just started laughing.
Shulk came over to help Melia up and suddenly pulled her by the hand and into a passionate kiss. It caught her off guard at first, but she closed her eyes and returned the kiss, pulling him into a tight hug as their lips broke apart.
"I love you, Melia." Shulk mused.
"I love you too, Shulk." Melia said back.
"Oi, you two! You coming or what?" Reyn shouted to them.
Staying in each other's arms, they looked over and seen everyone already climbing back up the hill.
Melia quickly stole a kiss before breaking out of Shulk's embrace and heading up the hill. Shulk caught up with her and they held hands as they walked behind the others.
"Nothing to say about stealing that-" Melia suddenly let out a yelp as Shulk lunged himself closer, pressing his lips to hers and stealing back the kiss.
"Nope, nothing at all~" He teased and looked back ahead.
Melia blushed and couldn't help but smile, nuzzling against him as they walked along.
It was starting to get late when they got back to the cave. Shulk took out the camping kit Reyn made for them and they all pitched in to set it up, already feeling exhausted and deciding to go to bed shortly after making dinner.
Melia rolled over in her sleep and reached her arm out, but it was met with an empty side of a sleeping bag. She started to stir from not feeling Shulk next to her and opened her eyes, seeing him sitting by the entrance to the cave.
"What are you still doing up, Shulk?" Melia asked and sat down next to him.
"I just wanted to check out the place at night." Shulk answered.
The crystals and icy trees outside started to light up and sent beams into the sky, illuminating the mountains in a soothing glow.
Shulk moved closer to Melia and kissed her cheek, nuzzling against her as they admired the scenery.
"You're certainly clingy tonight." Melia commented.
"You haven't realized where we are yet, have you?" Shulk asked.
Melia looked around and started to notice a pattern in the layout, the trees and crystals being arranged in a way she remembered seeing before.
"It really is beautiful here." Shulk mused, giving Melia a small hint.
"This is the same place we confessed our feelings for each other, isn't it?" Melia guessed.
"That it is." Shulk smiled.
Melia smiled back and held him in a tight embrace.
"That has to have been the happiest day of my life." She mused.
"Mine too." Shulk said and cradled her in his arms.
"Hey, Melia, want to go for a walk since we're still up? I brought that staff with us, maybe you could show me how to use it?" Shulk suggested.
"What if the others wake up and see that we're gone?" Melia asked.
"I don't think they'll mind." Shulk assured her.
"Well, if you think so…" Melia thought about it for a moment before nodding her head, "Okay then, let's go."
They put their winter clothes on over their pajamas and exited the cave. Melia held the staff at her side and took Shulk's hand as they walked, surveying the landscape.
"Shulk, look. There's another cave over there." Melia said and pointed to it.
"You think that would be a good place?" Shulk asked.
Melia nodded, "It'll keep us out of the cold, and if it's small inside, it could be an easily containable area for you to practice."
"Alright, let's go check it out." Shulk said.
At the entrance to the cave, Melia used the staff to summon a fire elemental and had it move around the inside to lighten it up. The cave seemed to be vacant, and also had ether crystal deposits that reflected the light coming from the elemental.
"It looks so beautiful inside under the light." Melia said softly.
"Seems like it's safe to go in too. Come on, Angel." Shulk added.
The two entered the cave and Melia handed Shulk the staff. It was decently sized inside as well, making for a containable practicing space like Melia mentioned.
"Did you have any preference on what you wanted to try first, Shulk?" Melia asked.
"Hm, how about a fire elemental, a small one like you did back at the Villa." Shulk suggested.
Melia nodded, "Okay. Summoning elementals requires constant focus, try to relax while you're channeling into the staff, and keep an image of it in your head."
Shulk took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying to keep his focus as ether emitted from the head of the staff. A small ember appeared over his head, but the elemental disappeared before it could finish forming, along with the ether being emitted from the staff.
"You almost had it." Melia said reassuringly.
"Almost, but what happened? Why didn't it work?" Shulk asked.
Melia put her hand to her chin, "I had trouble summoning elementals at first too. To help me focus, I would associate the elemental I was trying to summon with similar thoughts. Like if I wanted to summon a water elemental, I would picture Eryth Sea or other sources of water. Since you're trying to summon fire, try thinking of anything warm."
Shulk took a minute to clear his head before gripping the staff again. As the staff started to emit ether, Shulk tried to control his breathing and kept his focus on warm thoughts.
After a few moments, the ember reappeared and began to take form. Unlike the last attempt, this one finished forming and resided over Shulk's head. It was much smaller than an elemental Melia would usually summon, but a successful one nonetheless.
"I… I did it!" Shulk cheered.
Shulk was smiling brightly as he looked around the cave. The light coming from his elemental reflected off of the ether crystals and illuminated the cave in its soft glow.
Melia smiled along and gently caressed his cheek.
"I'm proud of you, Boo." She mused.
They were both blushing as Melia leaned closer and kissed him under the dim light, but she suddenly broke the kiss and looked panicked. The light from the elemental became much brighter and it hummed as it abnormally grew in size.
"Shulk, get down!" Melia yelled.
Melia tackled Shulk to the floor and shielded him from the elemental as it grew and hummed louder, exploding shortly after. The blast from it reached the ether deposits, making crystals break off and land on the ground.
"Shulk, are you okay?" Melia asked urgently.
"Yeah, I'm fine. What just happened?" He asked.
"Even after the elemental has been summoned, you still need to maintain your focus for as long as it's active. Other factors can affect the potency of the elemental, such as emotions and individual threshold on controlling ether." Melia explained.
Melia started shaking and leaned down, hugging Shulk tightly.
"I'm sorry, Shulk. I broke your concentration and made it harder for you to contain the elemental. It was my fault, and I put you at risk because of it." She whimpered.
"Hey, don't cry, Melia." Shulk said and held her close, "It's okay, I'm just relieved that neither of us were hurt."
Melia only gave a small nod, but Shulk refused to let her go until he was sure she had calmed down.
"It's okay, Angel. Neither of us were hurt, and that's all that matters. It wasn't your fault, and I'm not mad either." Shulk said while he soothingly rubbed her back.
Melia's shaking started to cease and Shulk let her go, thinking she'd finally calmed down. They stood up and he looked around the cave, noticing a big pile of blue ether crystals. He walked over and picked up a handful, seeming to be deep in thought as he gazed into them.
"What are you doing with those, Shulk?" Melia asked.
"I think I can make something with these, so I'm taking some back with us." He answered.
Shulk put the crystals in his pocket and walked back over to Melia.
"Want to call it a night and head back?" He suggested.
"Yes. It might be better to teach you about ether when we're back in Alcamoth." Melia said.
"Alright, as long as you're still the one to teach me." Shulk smiled.
"You still want me to teach you after what just happened?" Melia asked, looking down nervously.
Shulk gently pulled her in for a hug, "Of course I do. Don't get discouraged because of this, Melia. I didn't expect it to be perfect on the first try, I'm just happy that this is something we can do together and get better at, like when you want to help me build something."
Melia started to smile and hugged him tighter.
"Okay, Boo, if that's what you want." She said.
They held each other close for a few more moments and Melia took his hand.
"Ready to go?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm getting a bit tired." Shulk answered and let out a yawn.
They exited the cave hand-in-hand and started heading back to their camp.
"Shulk, I've decided on a name for the staff." Melia said as they were walking back.
"You did? What is it?" Shulk asked.
"Serenity." Melia answered with a smile.
"Is it supposed to be ironic since I nearly killed us with it?" He joked.
"I'm serious, Shulk!" Melia shot back, looking away embarrassed.
Shulk quickly threw his arms around Melia and pulled her in for a hug. She hugged him back but kept her face buried in his chest.
"I'm sorry, Angel. You know I didn't mean it like that, right?" He asked softly.
Melia lifted her head and pecked his cheek.
"I know. It's okay, Boo." She said.
"Seriously though, I like the name. I can engrave it on the staff too if you want." Shulk offered.
"Okay. We can do that when we get back home." Melia smiled.
The two arrived at the camp and seen that everyone was still asleep. They changed back into their pajamas and laid down in their sleeping bags.
Melia rolled over to Shulk's side and snuggled close to him.
"This was the best birthday I've had in a long time." She mused.
Seeing the bright smile on Melia's face, Shulk smiled back and leaned closer, giving her a tender kiss good night before they went to sleep.